Recording music from home - good applications? :)

[Vladan]

Hi, I bought a good microphone, USB one it came with an app called "Cakewalk" is that suppose to be a good app? just wondering, is there a better application, and I would like to get the best possible sound out there, seems this app is a little tricky to use.

I've used KARAFUN Karaoke, but it just sounds too flat and the music out ways the vocals, you can scream and it doesn't like anything at all.

Any advice, I just want to be able to record my voice so it sounds alright, you know.... maybe Cakewalk is the way to go

Cheers

[Arianddu]

Don't know anything about Cakewalk, I'm afraid.

What kind of recording do you want to do? There's a big difference in programs I'd suggest depending on what you want it for. A basic 'record my voice', like a digital version of sticking a mike into a tape deck is a very different beast to recording vocals to overlay a music recording.

A few details will help!

[Don]

Hi, I bought a good microphone, USB one it came with an app called "Cakewalk" is that suppose to be a good app? just wondering, is there a better application, and I would like to get the best possible sound out there, seems this app is a little tricky to use.

I've used KARAFUN Karaoke, but it just sounds too flat and the music out ways the vocals, you can scream and it doesn't like anything at all.

Any advice, I just want to be able to record my voice so it sounds alright, you know.... maybe Cakewalk is the way to go

Cheers

Try out the demo for Fruity Loops from FL Studio. It's a very good program.

[finalfight]

Cubase all the way for me. You should ask Jeremey what he uses as he gets some excellent results.

[Vladan]

Don't know anything about Cakewalk, I'm afraid.

What kind of recording do you want to do? There's a big difference in programs I'd suggest depending on what you want it for. A basic 'record my voice', like a digital version of sticking a mike into a tape deck is a very different beast to recording vocals to overlay a music recording.

A few details will help!

True, alright well I was thinking more of recording my own voice for practice and assessing my voice, so more for vocal training - which I do have a teacher, but this is more for to see how my voice is progressing, and also perhaps even a good application where I could even record my voice and overlay the vocals on a midi or something along those lines, and make a song

Try out the demo for Fruity Loops from FL Studio. It's a very good program.

Cheers mate, Finalfight PMed me with some cool information as well, thanks to all i'll check this PM out, ta!

[RockitRide]

Hi, I bought a good microphone, USB one it came with an app called "Cakewalk" is that suppose to be a good app? just wondering, is there a better application, and I would like to get the best possible sound out there, seems this app is a little tricky to use.

I've used KARAFUN Karaoke, but it just sounds too flat and the music out ways the vocals, you can scream and it doesn't like anything at all.

Any advice, I just want to be able to record my voice so it sounds alright, you know.... maybe Cakewalk is the way to go

Cheers

I use Cakewalk. My understanding is that it has the most powerfull midi capabilities. It is excellent if you use midi keyboards. I use the Sonar Producer edition which comes with a lot of nice fx applications, including some very fine pre-sets. Computer based recording has a long learning curve, but it is worth the time in the long run. I suggest you buy the book "Sonar Power". I have found this book to be an excellent resource (several editions are now available) . The guy who wrote it really knows the program inside and out and he is an excellent writer of this type of material. Keep notes on your settings because things can be unstable. For example, you may fire up your PC one day and find that you cannot hear any audio. You may have to reset your audio interface and also run the Wave Profiler from time to time. Good luck and stick with it through frustrations!

[RockitRide]

True, alright well I was thinking more of recording my own voice for practice and assessing my voice, so more for vocal training - which I do have a teacher, but this is more for to see how my voice is progressing, and also perhaps even a good application where I could even record my voice and overlay the vocals on a midi or something along those lines, and make a song

Try out the demo for Fruity Loops from FL Studio. It's a very good program.

Cheers mate, Finalfight PMed me with some cool information as well, thanks to all i'll check this PM out, ta![/quote
]
Recording to help your singing is a great idea. I used Cakewalk to record the awesome harmonized section of the Beach Boys 'Kokomo". (The Beach Boys are the ultimate melodic rock band!) I recorded four parts using my own voice to give to the guys in my band so we could work up a live version. It actually came out so well that I am planning on doing the entire song myself some with full instrumentation. I am a classical trained semi-pro singer, but I also sing a lot of rock with my band. I play the keyboards, drums and guitar so I have fun making my own versions of my favorite tunes.

[brywool]

Hi, I bought a good microphone, USB one it came with an app called "Cakewalk" is that suppose to be a good app? just wondering, is there a better application, and I would like to get the best possible sound out there, seems this app is a little tricky to use.

I've used KARAFUN Karaoke, but it just sounds too flat and the music out ways the vocals, you can scream and it doesn't like anything at all.

Any advice, I just want to be able to record my voice so it sounds alright, you know.... maybe Cakewalk is the way to go

Cheers

Cakewalk is good stuff.

[Voyager]

Cakewalk is good. Pro Tools seems to be the standard in the recording industry, but requires a proprietary hardware purchase.

[Jeremey]

On a PC, I would recommend Sonar, or the Cakewalk version that's now the basic home messin' around type edition. It's true, it's very MIDI friendly, probably more than any other desktop application. I used it since version 4 (1995?) and that was a big reason why it took me so long to switch to a Mac, because I knew the program so well and had invested so much $$ into the upgrades.

On the Mac, I have to make the argument for Logic Pro 8. This is what I use now and it's rapidly growing in market share. For basic recording stuff on the Mac, it comes with a great little multitrack program called Garageband that is good for just messing around with ideas, etc.

It sounds like you just want to record your voice over top of a karaoke track though. Cakewalk would be just fine for that. You can import the stereo instrumental track and then assign your microphone to another track to record your singing, add some effects, etc, get a good mix of voice/music, and export it as .mp3 or .wav or whatever.

Good luck!

[Tomulator]

On a PC, I would recommend Sonar, or the Cakewalk version that's now the basic home messin' around type edition. It's true, it's very MIDI friendly, probably more than any other desktop application. I used it since version 4 (1995?) and that was a big reason why it took me so long to switch to a Mac, because I knew the program so well and had invested so much $$ into the upgrades.

On the Mac, I have to make the argument for Logic Pro 8. This is what I use now and it's rapidly growing in market share. For basic recording stuff on the Mac, it comes with a great little multitrack program called Garageband that is good for just messing around with ideas, etc.

It sounds like you just want to record your voice over top of a karaoke track though. Cakewalk would be just fine for that. You can import the stereo instrumental track and then assign your microphone to another track to record your singing, add some effects, etc, get a good mix of voice/music, and export it as .mp3 or .wav or whatever.

Good luck!

Cubase 4 is quite good...if not a bit "complicated" for a beginner.